Can-do was brought in by our builder to fix some cracking in the drywall. They went above and beyond over several visits to fix the issue. When the crack came back after a patch, they returned to remove all the drywall to figure out the problem and move the seems to reduce the odds of the problem returning.
We recently built a new home with Homes by Avi and they contracted Showcase for the low voltage wiring. I only have a couple small gripes. They could have have left a little more slack on the runs in the mechanical room to give me more options for the enclosure location. They terminated 3 of the 5 external runs. When I asked about the one that wasn't terminated they said it was to prevent corrosion. That actually turned out fine because it allowed me to slip on one half of a weather proof boot before terminating and I had to cut the 8P8C off the other 3 to install weather proof boots on those runs. They also left zero slack on the two runs they didn't terminate so I don't have any flexibility in the future if I need it there. If they had given me an extra metre on those two runs and again in the mechanical room I would have given more stars.
Building a new home is stressful
We recently used Homes by Avi to build a new house. It was a stressful 11 months but Avi does a lot of things well and for us a few things very poorly. The worst part of our experience was the designer they assigned us for interior selections. This person was just bad at her job. She made numerous mistakes. We would catch one and then another and when she fixed the second mistake the first one would show up again. She cancelled meetings at the last minute and wouldn't be able to reschedule for weeks. Her design input was negligible, so I'm not sure why she was even necessary. A decent website could have done her job just as well. Once you start the build you get access to a website for your house. The website looks and feels like it was developed by the manager's nephew 14 years ago. The nice thing is that it has a bunch of exploits so you can see how much your neighbors paid for their build. The downside is that they can see all your information if they're so inclined. Information security is next to impossible for companies that specialize in it and I'm betting there isn't another builder out there that does any better in that capacity. Once things got moving they were generally pleasant to deal with. They did a good job of responding to issues and working with us when we ran into something that we were unhappy with. The quality of the work in the house did vary from trade to trade with some doing very well. We had some issues with tile that was so bad it must have either been the guy's first day on the job or done last on a Friday but they were able to address our concerns and fix the problem tiles. The HVAC contractor they hired made a couple very large mistakes are refused to admit anything was wrong. Fortunately I was able to troubleshoot and fix that issue myself. Generally we're pretty happy with the home Avi built for us and with their willingness to fix deficiencies. It's not something we'll likely do again anytime soon but it wasn't nearly as bad as the builder horror stories you hear.
Hi Scott,
Thank you for your reply. While we aim for 100% satisfaction, there are a lot of moving parts and people when building a home and we appreciate your mindfulness and patience with that. We are here for our homeowners - even after possession, so please do reach out to warranty if you feel the need to.
Thank you for choosing us to build your home - we wish you all the happiness in your new home!
Arpi's is the HVAC company that Avi contracted for my new home build. They installed the furnace and then the a/c after I moved in. The furnace they installed is incapable of heating this house when the temps drop below freezing outside. Their representative claimed the furnace is right-sized for efficiency but in this case it means grossly undersized. If its -20 outside and the furnace is set to 21C it will never get above 19C. The quality of the install job was very poor with gaps several millimetres wide at many seams and holes large enough to fit a pencil through at corners. I had to apply foil tape myself to keep the mechanical room at the same temperature as the rest of the house. They also did a poor job placing the vents around the house. Several all too close to the walls to fit a cover so their solution was to cut the edge off a cover and squeeze it in against the baseboard. It looks bad and means it will be nearly impossible to ever replace the cover.
We appreciate the feedback that you have provided. Throughout our various conversations, we have confirmed that the heat load calculation is correct and the equipment is properly sized for the application. We understand that the recovery time from the setback of the thermostat is of concern. We have offered to return to your residence to set the furnace to move to stage 2 immediately and by-pass stage 1 as the unit is designed to do. This will reduce the recovery time. We would be pleased to provide this service to you if you wish to proceed. Thank you. Arpi's.
I've hired Tim twice and he did a great job both times. I had him come in a fix carpet that started bubbling up after a couple years on a brand new build. Once he was done the carpet was nice and flat and any new seams were completely invisible. Solid, good quality work and he was a pretty nice guy too. I would definitely recommend using him if you have issues with your carpet.
Whoever put in my original sidewalk installed it so that half of it was slightly below grade. Every winter it was a huge pain as snow melted and and formed inch thick sheets of ice over it. After a few years the lowest section started to crumble and fall apart so I called for estimates. Mario was not the cheapest but he wasn't that far out either and he seemed like he cared the most. His crew was fast and did a great job working with me to make sure my concerns were addressed. They built the new sidewalk up so it was above the highest point in the yard. It looks a little awkward in the photo but looked great once dirt was brought in to regrade the yard so it sloped away from the sidewalk. This year there haven't been any issues with ice forming and it looks great. I will definitely call Mario first if I find myself with another concrete project.
Thanks so much for writing this review Scott. Your project is a good example of the difference between a contractor that is thinking for the long term and one that, well, basically is not thinking at all (sorry but it's true) The sidewalk was not old enough that it should have needed to be removed. It was basically installed at the wrong elevation which was the main cause of the failure. Negative slope and being below grade are both critical mistakes when pouring concrete. I'm glad we were able to rectify the situation for you and things are working properly now. The upgrade from a broom finish to a coloured exposed aggregate finish also made a huge difference in the aesthetics of the project. Great choice!
After about 2 years of living in my new build I noticed the carpet was starting to bubble pretty badly. I bought a knee-kick stretcher and spent several days getting rid of the bubbles. It was back breaking work and took forever for someone that doesn't really know what they're doing and I could see the seams where I cut out a couple inches in the doorway and rejoined. My work lasted another couple years but the carpet started to bubble again so I called Tim. It took him a few hours to do the upper floor, basement and stairs. The carpet looks new again and the seems where he cut out pieces are invisible. Given the amount of time it took me versus what it cost for Tim to do it, I would choose Tim every time.
Thanks Scott! Carpet is a tough trade and trying to do repairs without a power stretcher is definitely a painful experience. We're always glad with how happy people are with the results.
Golf ball sized hail destroyed some of our stucco detailing on one side of our house. Next Generation came out and fixed repaired the stucco but an unexpected rain storm arrived and washed away all their work. They came back a couple days later and did it again and it's held up since without any issues.
